


Bulletin Board Stories

by girljen



Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-20
Updated: 2020-07-05
Packaged: 2021-02-27 13:57:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 17,930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22338127
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/girljen/pseuds/girljen
Summary: The bulletin board by Pierre's General Store is often used for villagers to request items. Here are stories of some of the more interesting requests.
Comments: 35
Kudos: 143





	1. Gus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I need a Pufferfish to rub on my sore knee. Please bring one ASAP! --Gus”

When Emily entered the Saloon with a small cooler, nobody was behind the bar. The chairs were still on the tables. The TVs were off. Everything looked exactly as her and Gus had left it the night before.

She carried the cooler to Gus’s room. After a quick knock, she opened the door.

Gus was sitting in his recliner in gym shorts and a t-shirt, looking worried.

“Hey! I got your pufferfish!”

“Thanks, Emily. I’d get you some money, but I can barely walk. Go ahead and take 600G out of the register.”

“Oh no!” She sat the cooler on Gus’s lap. “Here you go. The fish is in water so it should still be able to puff up for you.”

“Great! I’ll just have it puff its spines out, then rub them into my knee--”

“THE HECK YOU WILL!” A voice behind them roared. Dr. Harvey had entered the room without them noticing, and he was power-walking toward them. He was carrying Gus’s bulletin. 

“What?” Gus froze, his hand hovering above the fish in the cooler.

Harvey snatched the cooler away. He set it on the counter and put the lid on. “No pufferfish!”

“But I heard the toxin they produce relieves pain…” Gus cringed and looked down at his lap.

Harvey took a deep breath and closed his eyes. “Where did you hear that?”

“The...the Gem Sea Cures website.” His voice was weak. “One of the natural healers on that site said rubbing a puffed pufferfish into an aching body part would stop the pain.”

Harvey pressed his lips together. Poor Gus looked terrified. Harvey wanted to yell and scream about that damned website, but he knew he’d only be hurting his cause. He sat down on the couch by the recliner. “You know, Gus, there is some truth to that. Pufferfish toxin does have the potential to relieve pain, and there are studies being done right now to see how we can use tiny doses of it for pain relief.”

“Then...why aren’t you letting me use it?”

“Because the dose to relieve pain is very small, and the dose you’ll get from a pufferfish’s spines is most likely large enough to kill you.” He kept his voice even and calm.

“Then why would it be on the website?”

“That website and its articles are produced from the backside of a horse,” Harvey said. Again, his voice was calm and pleasant.

Emily turned away to conceal her laughter.

Harvey continued. “The person who started that site was put in jail for false medical credentials. Two of its writers have been charged with fraud. They make their money by turning people away from the medical establishment, posting their natural remedies so people think they’re getting the information that doctors don’t want them to have, then selling essential oils and Gem Sea mud as a cure-all.”

Gus sighed and shook his head. “I just wanted something that would get me on my feet without having to go to the hospital, Doc…”

Harvey kept a straight face. “I know. You don’t like hospitals. Even going to the clinic spikes your anxiety, so I get why you’d try home care first. What exactly happened to your knee, anyway?”

“I don’t even know,” Gus grumbled. “I was closing up last night, putting a heavy pot of sauce in the walk-in fridge, and it just...hurt. It felt like it popped. I was able to put the pot down, but I could barely put any weight on that leg.”

“Alright. That could be something serious, and of course I’d love to take you to the clinic and get an x-ray, but let’s try a more conservative route first. Have you been taking over-the-counter painkillers?”

“Yes, sir. Max dose of everything.”

“Keep doing that. I’d also like you to put ice on your knee, keep it elevated, and don’t put any weight on it for the next few days.”

“How am I supposed to work?”

“I got it,” Emily said. “And where are your sandwich bags? I’m making you an ice pack, too. Need a pillow for under your leg?”

“Sandwich bags are in the drawer to the right of the sink, and yes please, I’ll take a pillow.”

Emily breezed around Gus’s apartment, grabbing ice and a pillow. She also got a glass of water, his bottles of pain medicine, a box of tissues, and every remote control Gus owned.

“Thank you, Emily!” Gus smiled brightly.

“You’re welcome.”

“Are you sure you’re okay working open to close the next few days?”

“Yeah, I could use the money. Sandy’s birthday is coming up in a few weeks.” Emily rummaged around in the pockets of her dress. She pulled out two crystals, one purple and one a deep black. 

“What are those?” Gus asked.

“This is amethyst,” Emily said as she handed him the purple crystal, “and this is black tourmaline. The amethyst has been used for pain relief for centuries. The black tourmaline brings high frequency energy into your body, which displaces negative energy and promotes healing.”

Gus gave Harvey a quizzical look.

Harvey nodded. “While there’s no empirical evidence linking crystals to pain relief, they are a traditional home remedy with anecdotal evidence backing them up. They’re even mentioned in the Holy Scriptures. And unlike pufferfish toxin, they won’t kill you.”

Emily continued. “Put the amethyst on your knee. You can balance it on there, and hold it down with a blanket.” She grabbed a throw blanket from the couch and put it over Gus’s knees. “Keep the black tourmaline in the pocket of your t-shirt, close to your heart.”

“Thanks.” Gus dropped the tourmaline in his shirt pocket, and put the amethyst on his knee. He carefully tucked the blanket around his injured knee so the amethyst and the ice would stay on.

“You look like you’re pretty well set up for now,” Harvey said. “I’d also like you to wrap the knee up, compression helps with pain and inflammation.”

“I don’t have anything to wrap it with.”

“That’s fine,” Harvey said, “I have plenty of bandages at the clinic. I’ll bring you one. I’ll also get you some crutches, some information about reputable health websites, and the national Ask A Nurse line, so you can call a nurse and see if you really need to come into the clinic. I know you don’t want to go to the clinic, ever, so I’ll do what I can to keep you out of it.”

“Thank you! I appreciate that!” Gus smiled warmly.

“Let’s plan on me coming back to re-check you in three days. That’ll be Wednesday. If your pain has gone down, we’ll see about putting weight on that leg. If not, we will have to go to the clinic and take an x-ray. Of course if your pain gets worse, or becomes unbearable, I’d like you to give me a call.” He stood and headed for the door. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

Emily walked to the counter and grabbed the cooler. “Since you don’t need this anymore, I’m going to put them back in the ocean. I’ll be back in time to open the Saloon.”

“Thank you, Emily. Will you please turn on the AC in the dining room on the way out? It’ll need some time to cool down.”

“Sure!” With that, Emily and Harvey walked out.

As soon as Dr. Harvey closed Gus’s door, Emily spoke again. “I thought you didn’t believe in crystal healing!”

“Far be it from me to take a potential relief option away from someone,” Harvey said plainly. “I mean, as long as it won’t literally kill my patient.”


	2. Shane

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Need Largemouth Bass to bring to my evening book club. --Shane”

Shane had just shoved two huge fillets of breaded fish in the oven and was washing his hands. He didn’t see Jas come out from the bedroom, still sleepy eyed and dressed in pajamas.

“Did you just cook something?” Jas asked. “I didn’t know you could cook, that’s cool!”

Shane dried his hands and laughed. “I’m just starting out.” He grabbed a cereal bowl out of the cabinet. “Want some cereal?”

“Maybe! What did you cook?”

“Breaded largemouth bass fillets.” He smiled proudly.

“Gross! Why are you making that?”

Shane laughed. “I’m making it for my book club.” He got the cereal from another cabinet and poured Jas a bowl.

“Why do you have to cook fish for a book club?”

“Well, it’s kind of a long story. The book we’re reading is about Garrett Fullerton, a gridball player who used to play for the Tunnelers. He got hurt, he got sick, his life was really difficult, and then he turned things around when he learned how to program a computer. He wrote a really cool program about gridball statistics, and now he’s on the Sports Channel.”

Jas stared blankly, not making the connection.

“This week, all the guys in the book club have an assignment to try to learn a new skill. By learning new skills, the thinking is that we’ll get a little more confidence in our abilities to learn and expand our minds.” He poured milk on the cereal, grabbed a spoon, and set the bowl down in front of Jas.

“Oh. And you do that for a book club? I thought a book club was just people who liked books.”

Shane smiled. “Most book clubs are small groups of people who read the same books and talk about them with each other. My book club is a few guys in Zuzu City who are trying to deal with life’s struggles,” he said, hoping she wouldn’t press for details. “This month, we’re reading the Garrett Fullerton book, and we’re focusing on opening our minds to new things. Last month, we read Elliott’s sci-fi novel and talked about resilience, because--”

“--The resistance!!” Jas cackled. “Even though the bad guys took over Planet Yazzo and started killing off everyone who was born on the planet, the resistance destroyed the empire and the cities and the weapons, and then they were rebuilding at the end! That’s resilience!”

Shane’s jaw dropped. “You’ve read it?!”

“Yeah, Aunt Marnie finished it and left it on the bookshelf, so I read it.” Jas shrugged and took a bite of her cereal.

“Wow.” Shane stared at Jas. “You’re really smart. Most kids your age don’t read books like that.”

“It was really hard and I didn’t understand the Yazzo language or why the characters spent so much time in the Grand Spire talking about alliances and planetary delegations...but I wanted to know what Elliott wrote, and I wanted to know what happened to Commander Yutkin, so I read the whole thing and asked Aunt Marnie about the hard parts.”

“That’s still more than most kids your age do. You should be proud of yourself, and keep reading books. They don’t have to be, like, the classics, or anything too complicated. Just stay in the habit of sitting down with a book and reading for a while each day, because it’s one of the most important things you can do…”

Jas had stopped listening. She had seen her copy of Sea Princess Chelonia’s Incognito Quest and started reading.

That evening, Shane went to Zuzu City for the Men’s Mental Wellness Book Club. 

The fish had turned out pretty darn good, and the guys enjoyed it. One of the guys had made a watercolor painting of a rose, and couldn’t wait to get home to keep painting. Another guy, using Garrett Fullerton’s example, wrote a very simple computer program that would randomly predict the outcome of a sports matchup. Another guy learned the choreography from a boy band’s biggest hit single, so he entertained the group by lip synching and dancing. There was a man who introduced himself in Dwarvish, one who built a wall clock out of a slice of a log, and one who had attended a yoga class.

“So, you see, gentlemen…” The leader of the group, a smartly-dressed young man, “By opening our minds to learning new skills, we gain confidence. That confidence doesn’t necessarily have to do with the new abilities we learn, since we’re still learning. The confidence is in our ability to learn! Thank you. Please finish the book this week. Since Garrett gets in touch with an old friend in the Tunnelers organization, I’d like to encourage each of you to get in touch with a friend from years ago. Let me know how it goes. Goodnight!”

The men milled around the conference room, grabbing their belongings and saying goodbye. Right before Shane left the room, the leader tapped him on the shoulder.

“Mr. Shane! Do you mind hanging back for a second?”

Shane checked his watch. “My bus leaves in 8 minutes.”

“Alright, I’ll make it quick.” He gave an insincere smile. “Mr. Shane, I’m a little concerned about the skill you chose to learn. I find it hard to believe that at your age, you’ve never cooked before. The point was to learn a skill that you’d never done before, not just a new recipe.”

Shane’s gaze was cold. “I think you need to open your mind. Not all of us grew up in Zuzu City with the opportunity to graduate college. Not everyone spent enough time in high school to do home ec or whatever. Not everyone had parents who taught them how to cook. Listen, man. I’ve lived on the streets. I’ve lived in shelters. I’ve been to jail. I’ve been in halfway houses. None of those places are exactly hotbeds of culinary activity. The only reason I have access to an oven now is because I’m staying at my aunt’s ranch, and the only reason she hasn’t thrown me out is because I know how to follow directions. That’s why my food turned out so good. Do you really think I’d take the bus all the way from Pelican Town once a week just to half-ass the work I should be doing to recover?”

The leader stepped back, wide eyed and slack jawed.

“Look. It’s fine. I don’t want there to be any hard feelings between us, just keep in mind that not everyone has the same life experiences.” With that, Shane grabbed his empty container and hustled down to the bus stop.

It was late at night when Shane walked through the door. He turned on the kitchen light to rinse out his container. On the kitchen table, there was a copy of Flower Princess Gardenia and The Secret Romance. Next to the book, there was a note.

“Jas’s Book Club meets next Friday! Book: Flower Princess Gardenia and The Secret Romance! Homework: Draw a picture of your favorite character!”

With a chuckle, Shane took the princess book to his room.


	3. Sam

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I would like a cute girl to bring me Grapes. (^_-) --Sam”

Sam tacked the notice to the bulletin board with a giggle. He walked through the town square and across the bridge to the library for his shift. The library was a much better job than JojaMart, but it could get boring. A visit from a cute girl would definitely break up the monotony.

“What’s up, Mr. G!” Sam reached across the circulation desk for a high five, which Gunther obliged. “What’s on the agenda for today?”

“Something exciting!”

“Nice!”

Gunther reached behind him and gently picked up a golden bracelet with a brilliant blue stone. It was dirty and tarnished, but Sam could see intricate, beautiful carvings on the golden bangle.

“Oh, that’s cool,” Sam said.

“That,” Gunther replied with a pause for suspense, “is Elvish!”

“Wait. Elvish? Like, from an elf? Elves are real?!”

“We know that they have existed in what is now the Ferngill Republic at some point. They may still be around now. We have found one other piece of Elvish jewelry, and a bow and a quiver of arrows that has Elvish-language engraving and can only be used by someone the size of an elf.”

“Aren’t elves tiny? Could dwarves use their stuff?”

“Fairies and leprechauns are sometimes referred to as elves,” Gunther said, “but no. High Elves are taller than us. They’re thinner, too, not as muscular.”

Sam tried his best to hold in a chuckle. “So basically, elves are tall, skinny, hard to find, and high. Sebastian’s an elf!” Sam belly laughed and pulled out his phone. “I’m gonna tell him!”

“Not that kind of high!” Gunther laughed, too. “The High Elf refers to the elfin creature of legends, the one encountered by the dwarves, the race that in ancient times balanced the power between men and monsters, magical and mundane. Finding any trace of them is a huge archaeological and historical discovery!”

“Why can’t you just, like, dig for bones when you find jewelry or weapons?”

Gunther gave Sam a strange look, an odd mix of confusion, disappointment, and admiration. “No Elvish bones have ever been found.”

“Woah, that’s creepy!”

“It leaves so many questions,” Gunther said. “Your job for today, in light of this discovery, is to work the circulation desk. I will be in the workshop, cleaning this jewelry as well as I can and trying to estimate when it was made. I’ll also be on the phone with the National Museum for a good portion of the day.”

“Nice, I get to run the place!” Sam laughed. “Can I shoot people with my slingshot if they have overdue books?”

“No.” With that, Gunther turned on his heel and walked back to the workshop, still holding the precious Elvish jewelry on top of his upturned palms.

Sam got to work, taking all of the returned books from the day before and setting them on a cart. He was just about to push the cart from behind the desk when Haley walked in.

“Haley! What’s up!”

Haley tossed her hair over her shoulder. Sam could tell that she was wearing a new outfit, and her makeup was incredible.

“You look cute,” Sam said.

“Thanks! I don’t have your grapes. But since I passed muster, I might try to find some.” She breezed right back out the door, leaving a hint of flowery perfume behind.

Sam blushed and giggled, then got back to work. About half an hour later, as Sam was re-shelving books, Abigail walked in.

“Hey, Sam! Did you get your grapes yet?”

“Nope.”

“Why not?”

“Haley just stopped by a little while ago. She is cute, but she doesn’t have grapes.”

“So,” Abigail said, a little more quietly, “What’s your criteria for cute?”

“You know! Cute! Like, someone who makes me smile just by seeing them!”

“Am I cute? Or do you just smile at me because we’re friends?” Abigail asked. She gave him a pleading look.

“Dude! You are totally cute!” Sam laughed. “Your hair is always awesome, your style is super cool…”

“But I’m so tall! And big! And I’m getting a tan. It’s all just so...eugh. I’m like a behemoth.”

“Now, I was not going to mention your body, because that could be inappropriate, but I like how tall and big and curvy you are. And even your light little tan is nothing compared to mine. Just keep wearing sunscreen and doing your best.” Sam patted Abigail on the back. “You’re totally cute.”

“Thanks!” Abigail blushed.

“Got any grapes?” Sam asked.

“No, I figured Haley or Leah would bring them.” Abigail shrugged. “Maybe Emily.”

“Ah. Well, maybe they’ll all come see me!” Sam laughed. “Do you need help in the library, or were you just coming to say hi?”

“Neither, I have a paper to write.” 

“Good luck, cute friend!” Sam patted her on the back again.

It was a quiet couple hours behind the desk. Sam had shelved all the books, wiped down the counter, rebooted the computers, and done the other little bits of admin work that needed to be done.

Sam was thrilled when Leah walked in, carrying a canvas bag.

“Hey! Leah!”

“Hey Sam. Did you get your grapes yet?”

“Nope!” He laughed.

“Well, I’m out foraging today. If you can’t get them from a cute girl and you still need them, I can probably help. I’ll be at the Saloon. If I find any grapes, I’ll have them with me.”

“Leah. What are you talking about?” Sam asked. He reached his arm across the desk and put a hand on Leah’s shoulder. “You are totally a cute girl! Your hair is beautiful and you’re in great shape and you have an awesome smile!”

Leah stepped back, crossing her arms. “Come on…” She sighed. “I’m covered in paint and sawdust, I have the chest of a 12-year-old boy, I have no makeup to cover up all these freckles and blemishes…”

“Still cute though! And I’m the librarian today so you can’t argue with me!”

“Leah!” Elliott came in and was pleasantly surprised. “You’ve been working hard this morning, I can tell.”

Leah rolled her eyes. “After I screwed up that sculpture I started yesterday and another painting, I gave up and decided to forage today.”

“Aww! No, Leah!” Sam called from behind the counter. “Don’t give up!”

“I’m not giving up forever, Sam,” she said. “Just today. Getting frustrated after I screw up a piece of art is a pretty common thing. The master has failed more times than the novice has even tried, or something like that.”

Leah and Elliott excused themselves to the far end of the library. Almost immediately afterward, Maru walked in.

“Hey, Sam…” Her voice was quiet and unsure.

“What’s up, Maru!”

“Have you gotten your grapes yet?”

“Nope! Seen a few cute girls, though.”

“Okay. If I find some grapes, should I, um, give them to Abigail or someone to give to you?”

“Maru, what the heck!”

“You asked for a cute girl to bring grapes. If I find grapes, I’ll need to find a cute girl.”

“Maru. You are a cute girl. You totally qualify!”

“Well, thanks, but I don’t see it. Especially when the other girls are so beautiful.” Maru shifted her weight uncomfortably.

“Okay, yeah, they are. Abigail’s gorgeous. Haley could be a model.”

“And Penny…” Maru said.

“Dude! Penny’s adorable! Penny’s always been adorable.”

“I’d say it’s unfair, but we still get to look at her!” Maru laughed.

Sam dropped the volume of his voice. “You know she’s in here, right?”

Maru blushed a deep red.

Sam continued. “She’s teaching Vincent and Jas.”

“Oh, that’s right! We’re meeting up a little later this evening. I’m not ready for her to see me yet, I’m a mess.”

Sam took a closer look at Maru. She had a bandage on her knuckle, some oil on her overalls, and her hair was a little frizzy.

“You’re a cute mess! Own it! Strut outta here like a supermodel!”

Instead, Maru scurried out and ran to the mine cart, trying to avoid being seen.

A little confused by his interactions with girls so far, Sam finished his shift. By the end of the day, Marnie and Caroline had each come in to check out books, say hi to Sam, and find out if they’re cute enough to deliver grapes. Sam, of course, informed each of them that they are in fact cute.

At the end of the day, Sam did the entire closing routine by himself. He popped his head into the workshop, fully intending to roast Gunther on the way out. But when he saw Gunther on the phone, talking about an ancient Elvish settlement, he turned and walked out the door.

On his way home, he stopped at the Saloon. The door swung open before he had a chance to go in. Emily hopped down the stairs. “Sam!”

“Oh! Hey Emily!” Sam high-fived her.

“Did you get your grapes yet?”

“Nope! I’ve had a few girls asking about them, but not bringing any. They say it’s because they’re not cute.” Sam shrugged.

“But they are cute! All of them!”

“Right? And none of them know how cute they are...it’s sad.” Sam said.

“Oh, they have a pretty good idea.” Emily folded her arms. “As soon as we’re old enough to pay attention, girls and women are being told what’s attractive and what’s not. According to our culture and media, light skin is attractive and dark skin is not. So Maru doesn’t feel very attractive. Again, according to our culture, thinness is considered attractive. So Abigail feels unattractive, even though I’d totally pay her to punch me. Don’t tell her I said that. Haley knows she’s more conventionally attractive than me, because she is blonde and has more feminine curves. And so on.”

“This is...wow. All a little over my head. But I’d let Abigail punch me too.”

“Me three,” Leah laughed as she walked up behind them. 

“I was just telling Sam about how we as women know how attractive we are, because it’s communicated to us directly and through culture and media.”

“And we never quite believe that we’re attractive enough, which is by design.” Leah went inside the Saloon.

Sam stared blankly at Emily. “Wait. Really?”

“Yes!” Emily facepalmed. “Look at movie stars. Most of them look like Haley. Or Haley, but a brunette. Look at clothing models. Most of them look like me, only with pretty faces. They’re long and lean.”

“Shut up! You have a pretty face!”

Emily didn’t seem to hear him. “Look at TV stars. Would a character who looks like Marnie get a lead part? Or a character who looks like Penny? It would be the one who looks like Penny. Now think about store shelves. Beauty products. You’ve probably never been down that aisle…”

“Yeah I have, with my mom.”

“Think about the stuff in there. Anti-aging. Anti-wrinkle. What message does that send? Gotta look young. Anti-blemish? Can’t have zits. Bronzer? Gotta have a tan. But it has to be tanned white skin, because skin lightening creams are also a thing. Women are made to feel inadequate so that they’ll buy things.”

“Aww, man, that sucks…”

“So that’s why you’re not getting any grapes.” Emily smiled. “Thank you for the compliment, by the way. I should probably get back in there and start working.”

“Thanks, Emily. Bye…” Now even more confused and disheartened, Sam kept walking home. 

As he got close to his house, he saw Penny talking to Vincent.

“Hey, Little Bro!” He called out to Vincent.

“Hey, Big Bro!” Vincent jumped and gave Vincent a high-five.

“Hey, Mr. Sam!” There was a little yell from the ground. It was Jas!

“I got your grapes,” Jas said. She put a bunch of grapes in Sam’s hand.

“Awesome, thanks! Here’s what I owe you,” Sam said, handing the grapes to Vincent and rummaging around in his pocket. He found a stack of coins and handed them to Jas.

“Yay!” Jas ran off, carrying the coins in her hand.

Sam looked over at Vincent, who was happily eating the grapes. “Bro, you better be glad I was gonna give those to you as a gift…” He laughed and shook his head. 

“I am! Thanks!” Vincent ran inside the house.

“Sam, why did you make that bulletin?” Penny asked.

“Well, I made it because I wanted to see a cute girl to break up the monotony at work, and kinda wanted some grapes to give to Vincent. But instead, like, all the girls came to the library, and told me they were worried that they weren’t cute enough. It was really sad!”

“Yeah, especially since most of the girls here are so beautiful! I mean, I’m not, and my mom doesn’t take care of herself and it’s starting to show…”

“Penny, stop it! I don’t want to make this awkward, but you’re gorgeous!”

Penny hung her head. “Look, I know that beauty is on the inside or whatever…”

“No. I mean you’re totally awesome to look at.”

“You have to say that, we’ve been friends since we were kids…”

“Hey! Maru thinks so too!” Sam felt his voice getting louder. “She just told me, like, a few hours ago!”

Penny perked right up. “Really?” Penny put a hand to her chest and sighed with relief. “Good, we’re going out tonight, I’m actually on my way to meet her.”

“Awesome! Have fun being cute together!”

Sam turned and went inside. He went straight to his room, got another sheet of paper and a marker, and made another bulletin.

“ALL GIRLS IN PELICAN TOWN ARE CUTE AND SHOULDN’T TRY TO CONVINCE THEMSELVES OTHERWISE. <3 --Sam”


	4. Sebastian

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “...feel like throwing Potato as hard as I can against the mountain face. Please deliver to Sebastian at 24 Mountain Road.”

“Hey, thanks for storyboarding this, Abigail.”

“No problem!” Abigail shuffled her papers around and picked up a pencil. “Are there any scenes you just don’t think you’ll be able to shoot?”

“You know,” Sebastian said, grabbing a piece of paper from the pile, “I’m worried about the time constraints for this scene here. Our heartbroken guy is going to be throwing plants against the mountainside, they’ll mix together and rot and become compost, and then a flower will grow from them.” Sebastian leaned back in his chair. “I just don’t know how long it takes to make compost. And once we get compost, we’ll have to grow a flower. I’d like a time-lapse of the flower actually sprouting and opening up, not a stop motion.”

“Right!” Abigail said. “The symbolism of actual growth, of an organism changing shape, is exactly what a song like Every Tomorrow needs! Like, at the very end of the song, when Sam sings “Every tomorrow is a chance” in the chorus instead of “Every tomorrow is the same,” and the key changes to reveal that little bit of optimism. We need a flower to actually grow.”

“It would be easiest if we could just grow it out of the compost pile. But compost takes a while to form, and I’d like this music video to be released at some point this year…” Sebastian leaned forward again, looking at the storyboard.

“POH! TAY! CHOOOOOOE!” Sam came stomping into Sebastian’s room, pulled three potatoes out of his jacket pockets, and started juggling.

“Dude! Thanks!” Sebastian reached out and grabbed one of Sam’s potatoes. “I’ll need to bake this so it splatters and then falls, to start the compost pile for the video.

“Oh, you’re actually doing that?” Sam continued juggling two potatoes, and grabbed a Solarion Chronicles figurine as a third object. “I thought we were gonna shoot the whole video at night and then have the sunrise be our glimmer of hope.”

“It would be easier,” Sebastian said. “But there’s something that’s just so raw and emotional about throwing plants at the mountainside, especially with the garden mentions in the first verse about the breakup and how he loses all that hope he had. And besides…”

“You really just wanna haul off and chuck veggies at the mountain and make a mess, don’t you?” Sam asked.

Sebastian shrugged and laughed. “Yeah.”

“Hey! I have an idea! We can grow the compost pile and the flower simultaneously!” Abigail clapped her hands as if she was applauding her cool idea.

“How?”

“Make a stunt pile! Make a pile of fertilizer, surround it with some fruits and veggies that got wrecked, and plant something that grows fast, like a poppy or a sunflower. Surround it with drip irrigation that won’t be seen on time lapse, and set up a time lapse camera. While the flower is growing, we’ll be a few yards away, hurling produce at the mountain to make a pile that’s pretty similar. We can cut our compost with fertilizer to make it look like it’s composting more quickly, too.”

“Nice!” Sam high-fived Abigail. “Helps to know a dude who runs a seed store, huh?”

“And being smart helps, too,” Sebastian said. He smiled and nodded, watching Abigail blush. “That was a good idea.”

“So what are we shooting first?” Sam asked. “The band playing the song, Seb and Abby’s reenactment of the story, or the compost thing?”

Abigail cringed. “I have a huge zit, I don’t want close-ups. So maybe playing the song or the compost thing?”

“Compost!” Sebastian laughed. “I’ll get a radar gun from Maru so I can see how fast I pitch now!”

“Wait, you know how to throw a ball?” Sam asked.

Abigail covered her mouth, hiding a laugh.

“Long story. Demetrius put me in diamondball when I was little. Of course I hated it, because that’s just too much playing with kids who take it way too seriously. But I liked pitching. Whenever we had to go to Grampleton, I’d have Mom take me to one of those places with batting cages and pitching radar and go karts and stuff. And I’d pitch. I love doing it, apparently I’m good enough at it to be recruited by the Grampleton High School coach.”

“You never told me that!” Abigail said. “Why didn’t you play in high school?”

“People.” Sebastian shrugged. “Competition. Just couldn’t be bothered. Besides, I was already staying after school on Mondays for Coding Club.”

“Oh yeah!” Sam said. “I forgot you did that! Is that why you do programming now?”

“Probably.” He shrugged again. “I’m gonna bake those potatoes. I need someone to get more plants, and someone to call Shane and ask to borrow his camera.”

“I’ll forage!” Abigail and Sam called.

“I should forage, I need the exercise!” Abigail said.

“We both walked up the mountain and you know it. I should forage because I don’t mind getting my clothes dirty.” Sam gave Abigail a smug smile.

“Ugh, I don’t wanna call Shane. He’s always such a jerk. I would much rather get my clothes dirty than have him berate me.”

“Oh! Dang, I’m sorry. You forage, I’ll call Shane. I’m used to him, he’s not as much of a butt to me anymore.”

About an hour later, the band met up at the mountainside. Sebastian had a bag full of produce from his kitchen, along with Maru’s radar gun. Abigail also had a bag of produce, with spice berries and grapes and red mushrooms from the fields. She also had a bag of fertilizer from Pierre’s. Sam had Shane’s camcorder, and Sebastian’s digital camera was in his pocket.

“Alright!” Sam raised the cameras triumphantly. “Let’s get this done!”

Abigail poured the fertilizer into two piles, neither of which were within camera range of the others. She smashed a spice berry over the top of each fertilizer pile, then covered them with fallen leaves and grapes.

Sebastian set up his camera to point at the stunt pile, then pointed the radar gun at where the plants would be flying.

Sam made sure the camcorder was recording and had enough memory.

“Alright, let’s do my makeup,” Sebastian said.

Sam laughed. “What?! Makeup? You really are a rock star!”

“No, just a little gray under the eyes and red on the nose. I want it to make it look like I’ve been crying.” 

“Consider it done!” Abigail put matte gray eyeshadow under Sebastian’s eyes. She spread some blush on his nose, making it look raw from using tissues. 

“Thanks.”

“No, wait, I have more.” She pulled out a bottle of eyedrops. “I’ll put these on your cheeks, right under your eyes.” She tilted Sebastian’s head up and put the fake tears on his face. She then turned him to face her, one hand still on the back of his neck.

He looked like a man who’d been up crying all night. Abigail couldn’t help it, a sympathetic look spread across her own face. “Poor thing!”

Sebastian gave her a hug. “I’ll be fine. I just need to throw a bunch of produce against the mountain.” He laughed.

She laughed too, backing up and giving him a playful slug in the arm.

Sebastian picked up the potato.

“Seb, am I filming this?”

“Yeah. Film every shot, toward the stunt pile and the real one. I have a feeling this is going to require some editing.” Sebastian tossed the potato up and down in his hand.

“Alright.” He spoke louder. “Filming video only of Sebastian yeeting produce at the mountain, stunt pile! Action!”

Sebastian stepped forward and pitched the baked potato, looking as precise and powerful as a professional pitcher. The baked potato slammed against the mountain face, exploded into white fluff, and fell to the ground, right on top of the pile.

“YEAH!” Sam and Abigail cheered.

Sebastian hurried over to the radar gun. “Not bad.”

“Dude, you popped a potato!!” Sam cackled.

Sebastian grabbed the next potato. Again, his pitch was precise and professional. Again, the potato exploded into white fluff.

“Throw one at the real pile this time,” Sam said. “And make it look less like a pro. You look like you’re pitching for the championship, not getting over a girlfriend.”

Sebastian wandered over to the radar gun. “Huh! I could pitch for the championship with that speed,” he said. “Good to know, even though team sports are literally the worst.”

“Nice! Now, this throw doesn’t have to be as hard, but put some raw emotion into it.”

“Alright.”

Sam continued dramatically, stepping back to get a wider shot of Sebastian. “Remember. You trusted her. You believed her. She brought you out of your shell, taught you that love can be wonderful...and then...she cheated on you!”

Sebastian let out an angry yell and hurled the potato at the mountainside. His form fell apart, and the pitch was slow. Again, it exploded, though not as spectacularly as the ones before it. 

“That’s fine,” Sam said. “Let’s get the raw emotion shots on this pile, and the hard throws on the other pile.”

“Sure.” Sebastian grabbed a spice berry, bigger than a potato, and tossed it from one hand to the other.

“Remember: You’re angry! Your life is ruined! You’re heartbroken!”

Again, Sebastian yelled, and hurled the spice berry at the mountainside. It splattered.

“AWWW! That’s gonna be so cool with a faster throw!” Sam yelled.

Sebastian spent the next hour throwing produce and plants at the mountainside, leaving a mess on top of each compost pile, as was the plan. By the time he was done, he was sweaty and his hair was limp, which just made him look more pitiful. 

“Think we got enough shots?” Abigail asked.

“Yeah, I think so. I hope so,” Sebastian said, “because I’m done. I’m going inside to take a shower.”

“You still have some produce left,” Sam said.

“You guys can have it.” With that, Sebastian took the video camera and wandered inside. As soon as he got inside, he set the camera on the table and made a beeline for the shower. Even with the water running, Sebastian heard Abigail and Sam yelling and laughing. Every once in a while, he’d hear the thump of a particularly big fruit against the mountainside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This may also explain all that "Need a ______ for a project I'm working on" bulletins from Sam.


	5. Haley

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “FOR GIRLS ONLY: psst...I need Purple Mushroom...you know what it’s for. Keep it secret, okay?--Haley”

Maru was a mess. Her hands were dirty and scraped. Her face was smeared with dirt. Her hair, usually straightened, was pulled up in a tiny curly ponytail and topped with a bandana.

She’d been in the mines all morning, digging for materials for her latest build. Her backpack was stuffed with ores. Her pockets were stuffed with emeralds. And in her hands, she carried the biggest purple mushroom she’d ever seen.

“Well, here it is,” Maru said, “but I don’t exactly know what it’s for.”

“You don’t?” Haley leaned in a little closer, inspecting Maru’s face. “Okay, yeah, that kinda makes sense.”

Maru stepped back. ”What?”

“Your skin needs some help, girl. Didn’t your mom teach you about skincare?”

“Yeah. Sunscreen in the morning, wash and moisturize at night.” Maru shrugged.

“And?”

Maru stared blankly. “Um...don’t pop zits? Never sleep with makeup on?”

“Okay, you’re coming with me.” Haley patted Maru on the back, aiming her toward Emily and Haley’s house. “You have so much to learn. You have to exfoliate, you have to do face masks and serums and night cream…”

“Why?”

“So your skin will look better! And feel better. Your face is so dry, I don’t know how you stand it.” She opened the door.

“Hi Haley, hi Maru!” Emily called through her closed bedroom door.

“Hi Emily, hi Emily’s friend!” Maru called back.

The parrot, recognizing that someone was talking about them, screamed in reply.

“I hope that bird’s not screaming all day,” Haley said.

“Parrots are social creatures,” Maru said. “Some parrots do a roll call, once in the morning and once at night, to check that the whole flock is there. Sometimes they scream at strangers to communicate, like, hi, I’m a bird like you.”

“Where’d you hear that?” Haley asked.

“My dad. He knows quite a bit about parrots, he got interested in them after studying in the jungle.”

“So it’s legit?” Haley asked. “I mean, Emily told me, but I thought she was just making excuses for her stupid bird.”

“Smart bird, you mean!” Maru laughed. “Parrots are the only birds besides corvids that use tools. Scientists are debating on whether their vocalizations are complex enough to be considered language. With intelligence like that, they get bored, and bored birds are bad birds.”

“Now that is good to know.” Haley led Maru to the bathroom. She set down a microfiber cloth and a bottle of luxury face cleanser in front of Maru. “Wash your face.”

Maru bristled internally. It wasn’t time to wash her face. She washed her face in the shower every night. But she was curious about what Haley would teach her about skincare and why Haley was so insistent.

She took off her glasses and set them aside, then grabbed the microfiber cloth and reluctantly began to wash. The brown and red dirt from her face and her hands contrasted deeply against the sparkling white sink. Noticing this, Maru washed her hands, then went back to work on her face. Once she was all rinsed off, Haley gave her another, larger microfiber cloth.

“Just pat your face dry, don’t rub.”

After patting her face dry, Maru put her glasses back on.

“How does your skin feel?”

“Tight,” Maru said. “Dry.”

“I figured as much. What moisturizer do you use?”

“I just use my mom’s. I think it’s called Best Face Forward, the combination skin stuff.” Maru shrugged.

Haley looked like she was about to scream.

“What?” Maru laughed.

“Girl, no! Your skin can feel so much better! Here, try this, it has hyaluronic acid in it.” She shoved a little pot of moisturizer into Maru’s hands.

Maru took off her glasses and dotted the moisturizer on her face, rubbing it in for a few seconds.”Oh, hey! That does feel nice! I don’t even have to put on a second layer of it.”

“Does your dad have dry skin?” Haley asked.

“Oh yeah.”

“What does he use?”

“Manly Guy Power Lotion!” Maru laughed.”Which, I mean, it’s fine, I use it too when my elbows and my knees get ashy, but he gets mad at me because it’s not cheap.”

“What about on his face?”

“Aloe Vera and cucumber. He does a mask in the shower every morning. Don’t tell him I told you that.”

“Ugh! Guys are so…” Haley tossed her head back and rolled her eyes. “I mean, all humans have skin and we all deserve to feel physically good in it, and guys are just, like, too proud for that stuff! Alex still won’t let me give him a facial, and he needs one!” She deepened her voice in a manly imitation. “I’m so tough, I don’t need to take care of myself! This is hard workin’ MAN skin!”

Maru laughed. “Then why is the mushroom for girls only? And what are we doing with it, anyway?”

“Oh! Yeah, that. We’re making a moisturizing and repairing serum. Purple mushroom has a magical reaction with female skin. It would basically just sit there on a guy’s face.”

“Wait. Magic?”

“Yeah, ask Emily. The wizard loves those things, because they have this little bit of magic power...I mean, it does things other than make women’s skin look really, really good...but we’re just interested in the beauty side of it right now.”

Maru’s eyes widened. Suddenly, she wanted to be back in the caves, grabbing up purple mushrooms to study.

Haley continued. “Anyway, follow me to the kitchen. We’re going to boil this mushroom, add some dried fairy rose petals, add some fresh summer spangle flowers, and let it reduce for a while.”

“Okay. Need me to start the water?”

“Yes please, just use the stock pot already on the stove, fill it halfway.” Haley took out a cutting board and washed the mushroom and the spangles. She chopped the mushroom up into tiny pieces, exposing what looked like a labyrinth of vessels inside.

“Oh, hey, that’s cool!” Maru started the water, then grabbed a chunk of mushroom. “I gotta find some of these! I wonder if my dad has any…”

Haley gathered up the mushroom chunks and tossed them in the water. She took the spangles out of the sink and grabbed a paring knife. She cut the flower heads off whole, making sure no leaves got mixed up with the petals.

“We want as much pollen in the serum as possible.” Haley put the flowers in the pot, pollen side down, and let them float on the water. “The flowers will eventually get waterlogged and sink, but for now, it looks like they’re dancing.”

“Hey, it kinda does!” Maru laughed. “They look like little ballerinas!”

“Yeah! I always wanted to do ballet class when I was a kid…” Haley sighed.

“It’s not all it’s cracked up to be,” Maru said. “It’s exhausting! And so precise! And if there’s ever a point where a ballet dancer loosens up and starts enjoying themself, I didn’t get to it. Hip hop dancing and two stepping are so much more fun.”

“That’s...an odd combo. Like, country two stepping?”

Maru beamed. “Exactly! I had my dad teach me how to do it so I could dance with Penny.”

“Okay, that’s actually really cute!” Haley giggled. “Where do you go to dance, though? Because doesn’t she, like, hate the saloon?”

“We’ve gone to the Fairy Rose in Zuzu City a few times. It’s definitely a saloon, but the main draw is the dance floor. We dance at festivals all the time. And every once in a while, when we both get the urge to dance and it’s early in the day, we go to the Stardrop, put a couple coins in the jukebox, and we each get a cup of coffee.”

“Awwww! You two are adorable!” Haley tilted her head to the side. “Wait. Are you two a couple?”

Maru blushed and sighed. “I wish! And I hope! And I’m seriously considering getting her a bouquet. But what if she doesn’t want it? She seems more traditional than I am, what if she’s attracted to men?” Maru cringed. “Or what if she’s attracted to women who aren’t me?”

“Only one way to find out,” Haley said. She poured a large jar of dried fairy rose petals into the serum and mixed it around with a wooden spoon. 

As the serum cooked, then cooled, Haley and Maru talked skincare and romance. Maru was more emotional and sentimental than Haley had given her credit for; she just went about it in a detached and practical way. And to her credit, Haley was much more compassionate and intelligent than Maru had thought.

“Now, Maru, this is something I normally don’t do. Normally, I just package the serum up and give some to Emily and some to Granny Evelyn, keep a bottle for myself, and pop the rest in an ice tray for when I get a sunburn. But your hands are, like…”

“Wrecked?” Maru laughed.

“In need of some magical healing.” Haley grabbed a skimmer and used it to take the solid ingredients out of the serum. She tossed them in an empty bowl. “That’ll go in the compost bin later, or else Emily will kill me.”

“Tell her that animal products make terrible compost,” Maru laughed.

The pot was full of warm, cloudy liquid. Haley grabbed what looked like a turkey baster, and filled four small vials of serum.

“Okay, Maru. Stick your hands in there.”

“Are you sure it’s not too hot?”

Haley stuck her own hand in. “Yeah, it’s just nice and warm.” She pulled her hand off and gently patted it dry with a microfiber cloth.

“Okay, here goes.” Maru stuck her hands into the warm liquid. As soon as her hands hit the water, she gasped. “Wow! That feels really good!”

“That’s the magic. With how often you bang your hands up, you should make this serum. Your face only needs a few drops a day...but soaking your hands in it will do wonders for them.”

“So, why is it just assumed that all girls know how to do this?” Maru asked.

“Because most of them do. Their moms teach them, because their moms make this stuff all the time.”

“Oh. Yeah.” Maru laughed. “I lucked out in the mom department in a lot of ways, but she is not girly. So I totally missed that. Thanks for teaching me how to make it!”

“No problem! Soak your hands for about another five minutes. Then pat them dry with a microfiber towel, take your serum home and keep it in the fridge, take a shower, and give Penny a bouquet.”

“Okay. Wait, what? Now?”

“I mean, you could just go dancing with her again...but you learned to dance to country music for her, and she tolerates going in the Saloon for you, so it’s obvious that you two are pretty into each other.” With a laugh, Haley walked away, leaving Maru alone with her thoughts and her magically healing hands.


	6. Clint

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I am looking for Joja Cola to skewer on a shishkebab. --Clint”

“How do people come up with these ads?” Clint asked. “I need a walleye to bring to my book club! I need a gold bar to put on a chain! I need a dandelion because I’m making a burrito!” He laughed.

“Right?” Willy asked. “I’m running low on diamond! Yeah, me too, buddy!”

“Or that one about throwing potatoes against the mountainside!” Gus chimed in.

“You know, I wonder if anyone else ever reads the excuses people give for needing these things, or whether they’re just like, ‘Oh, someone needs a cauliflower. I have a cauliflower. I’ll give it to them and get paid.’” Clint said.

“We should post an ad,” Willy said. “Come up with the silliest thing we possibly can, and see if we get any questions about it.”

“Yeah!” Gus laughed. “Make it something easy to get, though, so people will actually get it for you.”

“Okay,” Clint said, “Joja Cola. Nothing easier to get than that, unfortunately.”

Gus pulled out a piece of paper and slapped it down on the bar, along with a pen. Clint wrote: “Help Wanted - I am looking for Joja Cola”

“Now we just need a reason!” Willy said.

“To put in a burrito?” Clint asked.

“Nah, people actually use cola to sweeten meats sometimes.” Gus grabbed an old, worn cookbook from under the bar.

“Really?” Willy and Clint both reached for the cookbook.

Gus opened it up. “Really. Check out this recipe for Zuzu City brisket. It uses cola. I mean, it recommends some sort of artsy-craftsy small batch cola, but still. Cola has acidity to tenderize the meat and sweetness to flavor it.”

“To rub on my sore toe?” Clint asked.

“Nah, then you might get Harvey badgering you to come into the clinic,” Gus said.

“To bring to...a tea party!” Willy laughed.

“Oh, that’s a good one!”

Shane interrupted. “How about to skewer on a shishkebab? I’ll bring you one if you can actually figure out how the heck to do it.”

“YEAH!” Clint, Gus, and Willy cheered.

Clint wrote, “...to skewer on a shishkebab,” signed his name, and left the bar to tack the paper up on the bulletin board.

“Now let’s see if we get any colas and any questions,” Gus said. 

Clint came walking back in, giggling to himself. “Sebastian saw me putting up the sign! He said he wanted to know how the heck I’m gonna skewer a Joja Cola, so I told him to come to the beach tomorrow night.”

“So how are you gonna do it?” Willy asked.

Clint shrugged. “I figure I’ll just haul off and stab one first, to see how that goes. I mean, an exploding soda can is always funny.”

“You know, I’ve put a soda can in a fire before,” Shane said. 

“Was it cool?” Clint clenched his fists in anticipation.

“Of course! So much pressure!”

“So if we can figure out a way to get the cans on a shishkebab, while remaining closed, and get them over fire, this is gonna be awesome.” Clint rubbed his hands together.

“Correct!” Willy laughed.

The next evening, a small crowd had gathered at the beach. Clint had prepared a fire pit and put a grill on top of it. Next to that were a few steel skewers. 

Sebastian, Abigail, and Sam, and Maru each brought colas. So did Willy and Pam. Elliott stood by nervously, with a trash grabber and a bag and a fire extinguisher at the ready. 

Clint grabbed a steel skewer and a Joja Cola. “Ready?”

Everyone cheered.

Clint jabbed the skewer through the thin aluminum of the can, which let out a fountain of bubbles and a spray of soda, all over Clint’s face, sweater, and apron.

“Son of a…!” Clint threw the skewer, laughing and wiping his face off. That got everyone else laughing, too.

“Ok, I was just kidding about that. But check this out!” Clint carefully slipped the skewer through the tabs of the soda cans. He made sure not to puncture the tops of the cans. Then he set the shishkebab of cans on the grill and quickly took a few steps back.

“Pressure vessels are just so excruciating!” Maru’s hands hovered in front of her mouth.

Sam laughed. “I have no idea what that means.”

Maru spoke quickly and softly. “Okay. Eventually, the pop in those cans is gonna boil. When that happens, the steam will have nowhere to go because the cans are sealed. That means pressure will build up inside the can until the can fails spectacularly.”

“Okay, I think I know what that means,” Sam said in a sing-song voice, doing a tiny happy dance.

The fire crackled.

There was a noise, it sounded metallic...was it a can?

Had it even been a noise?

Maybe not.

The fire spread with a whoosh, a pop, and the sound of metal being torn, all happening at once. Then the hissing came, shooting Joja Cola and ashes every which way.

The crowd screamed and ran, back toward the driftwood and grass.

“NO WAY!”

“Oh, Yoba!”

A few seconds later, with loud and sticky fanfare, the cans landed empty. The crowd applauded and laughed as the fire died down.

Elliott stepped forward with a trash bag, and his garbage grabber. “Thank you, Clint! Good show!”

The small crowd applauded.

Elliott turned to Clint to speak more privately. “Thank you for allowing me to get in touch with my baser urges,” he said. “But we musn’t ignore the needs of the beach’s long term residents.”

“Oh yeah. Think the cola would be a problem?” Clint asked.

“I’m not nearly as worried about that as I am about the cans and the metal. Those can be dangerous to the sea creatures.” Elliott glanced down toward the sand, where a hermit crab was scuttling around.

Clint let out a high pitched scream and jumped back.

Elliott picked up the hermit crab. “You’re a big thing, aren’t you?” He carried the crab toward the water, cooing and talking softly. “Don’t worry, we’ll get all that trash and keep your beach clean.”

Clint stared, nose wrinkled in disgust.

Elliott set the crab down on the beach. “There ya go, now you’re out of our way and you’ll be safe.”

“You...like those things?” Clint asked.

“While not conventionally beautiful, I admire their tenacity and innovation.”

Clint shrugged. “I could see that. Anyway, better get cleaning. Even the gross things on the beach deserve to stay safe.” With that, he took out a flashlight and started searching the beach for metal. 

Elliott fashioned a torch out of driftwood; he could have easily gone to his house and gotten his battery-powered flashlight, but he loved the raw sensuality of holding a torch. He searched the beach for metal, secretly hoping that the glow of the fire was lighting his skin in a beautiful way.

Clint quickly found most of the metal, and the crowd found a few pieces as well. Everyone brought their twisted can strips, destroyed skewers, and bowed-out can bottoms to Elliott, who did in fact look mysterious and beautiful with the torch lighting his face. 

Clint took the scraps of metal home. He kept the most interesting-looking scrap, a curled ribbon of aluminum. He displayed it on his counter, glad to share the story with anyone who asked.


	7. Alex

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Need kale for a stir-fry I’m making. Could someone bring me one? --Alex”

“Oh, you know your way around a kitchen!” Caroline walked into the Mullners’ house, carrying a bunch of kale. She was impressed by the neatly chopped veggies waiting in a bowl, the hot wok on the stove, and the rice cooker already starting to steam.

Alex had already hurried back to the sink and started washing his hands. “Thanks, Ms. Caroline! I have to eat a lot of high performance food to keep my physique where I want it, it wouldn’t be fair to make Granny make all my food. Besides, the more I cook, the more I enjoy it.” Alex used a paper towel to dry his hands and took the kale.

“I hope this is enough,” Caroline said. 

“Thanks, it’s totally enough! It’s more than enough, actually, I’ll be having trout on sauteed kale for lunch tomorrow.”

“Is this some of your high performance food?” Caroline asked.

“Nope, just dinner for me and Granny and Gramps.” Alex poured the bowl of veggies into the wok, laughing as the wok hissed and steamed.

“That’s so sweet of you!”

“Thanks. They’re old and they deserve a rest, I like to help when I can.” Alex shrugged.

Haley had come in while Caroline and Alex were talking. She interrupted. “Wait, you can cook?!”

Alex blushed and wiped his hands on his apron. “Yeah! And I can clean and wash dishes, too!” 

Caroline and Haley laughed.

“Alex, I hate to cut this short, but I have to head back to the store.”

Alex dug around in his pocket and grabbed a handful of coins. “Oh, right! Here’s what I owe you. Thanks for the kale, it looks great!”

“And thank you!” Caroline counted the coins on her way out.

Alex washed about half the kale, leaf by leaf, setting it in a colander in the sink. “What’s up, Haley?”

“Oh, I was just coming by to see what you’re up to.”

“Stir fry!” Alex dried his hands and shook the wok to redistribute the veggies. He then patted the kale dry with a paper towel, stacking it on a cutting board. “Granny told me about this awesome stir fry restaurant in Grampleton last night. She said she missed going there and she really wanted a good stir fry. But since she quit driving, and I don’t have a car, and I’m not sure that Granny could make the walk from the bus stop to the restaurant, I’m making stir fry for them myself.”

Haley’s face softened. “That’s so sweet!”

Alex cut the thick stems off the kale, then rolled the leaves up together. “I’m making a sweet ginger sauce to pour over it, too. That’ll balance out the bitterness of the kale, and hopefully make Gramps forget he’s eating leafy greens.” He quickly chopped the kale into thin ribbons.

“Wow, that sounds really good!”

“Want to stay for dinner?”

“Sure!” Haley clapped her hands in front of her chest. “It’ll be such a nice change from Emily’s food! Like, she knows how to cook, but it’s all weird vegan health food stuff.”

“Wait. Vegan?” Alex mixed the kale into the wok, then rushed to the fridge and grabbed ginger, soy sauce, chicken stock, and honey.

“Yep. No meat, no fish, no milk, no animal products of any kind.”

“That’s hardcore! How do you two get your protein?”

“Beans, mostly. Lots of grains, too, but only the weird ones like amaranth and quinoa.” Haley rolled her eyes.

“Well, you’re in for a treat. This has chicken!”

Haley squealed with delight. “YES! Oh, Yoba, I haven’t had chicken in months! I think the last time was when I went to the Zuzu City Winter Market!”

“I had to go to the butcher shop in Grampleton to get it. Totally worth it. It’s so hard to get good meat in this town.” Alex was busy mixing up the sauce, adding ingredients to a mason jar.

“Yeah, no kidding! Gus’s spaghetti has meat sauce sometimes, and every once in a while he’ll do steaks as a special, but it’s basically fish or nothing here.”

“We need a butcher shop here in town,” Alex said. He put the lid on the mason jar and shook vigorously to mix the sauce. 

“Right? That would be amazing! Of course, I don’t know how to cook meat…” Haley cringed.

“Want me to call you next time I cook some up?” Alex asked. “I usually get chicken once or twice a month. It’s harder to get my hands on steaks or game, but I get it sometimes. And I usually always have fish.”

“Sure!”

“Wait! You probably don’t know how to cook eggs, either, do you?”

“Nope.”

“Oh, Yoba...wanna come over for breakfast tomorrow? I’ll show you how to fry an egg.”

“Yum! I haven’t had eggs in forever! What time?”

“Around 10:00? I know you’re not much of a morning person,” Alex said.

Haley let out a sigh of relief. “You’re the best! I know you usually get up early and work out, I was a little worried there.”

“Tomorrow’s a rest day.”

Haley giggled. “Every day is a rest day for me!” She paused. “Actually, that’s not quite true. I do a lot of walking to take photos.”

Alex poured the sauce over the food in the wok and turned the heat down. He put the cutting board, the knife, the colander, and the mason jar in the sink, where the breakfast dishes were still waiting.

Haley put on the yellow rubber gloves at the sink, plugged one side, and squeezed dish soap into the water. “Ugh. I hate doing dishes.”

“Oh, you don’t have to do them,” Alex said.

“Well, you’re making food and letting me have some,” she said. “You’re already working. Besides, doing dishes totally sucks and I don’t want you to have to do them.”

Alex blushed and gave Haley a lopsided smile. “Thanks! I really appreciate that, Haley. I was dreading doing those, too.”

They worked in silence for a couple minutes, Haley washing dishes and Alex getting the rice out of the rice cooker.

“Hey!” George rolled into the kitchen. “Are you makin’ a guest do housework?”

“No, sir!” Haley said. “I chose to do these dishes because Alex is cooking.”

“What are you making?”

Alex beamed as he lifted the wok off the warm stove. “Stir fry! Chicken and veggie stir fry with a sweet ginger sauce.”

“Oh yeah, I guess Evelyn was talking about that one stir fry place in Grampleton.” George sighed. “Dang, I miss our little car. It’s a shame that Evelyn got too damn old to drive.”

Alex nodded sadly. “Yeah. I need to keep saving and get a car of my own. But, for now, we can have homemade stir fry.”

George grunted. He grabbed napkins and silverware, and set three places at the table. “Haley! You staying for dinner?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Hmph. Alright.” George rolled back to the cabinet and grabbed another place setting.

Just then, Granny Evelyn walked through the front door. She wore a heavy-duty apron with a trowel in one pocket and a pair of pruning shears in the other. She had dirt smeared on her face. “Hi, honey!”

George, Alex, and Haley all turned to say hello.

She giggled. “Hi, honeys! What’s all the to-do?”

“I made stir fry!” Alex said. “I remembered you talking about the stir fry place in Grampleton last night, and decided to use up the chicken and veggies in the fridge to make some stir fry of my own. I also made a sweet ginger sauce for it. Haley showed up while I was cooking, and she helped me out with the dishes...she’s staying for dinner, too.”

“Oh, you are such a sweetheart!” Granny gave Alex a big hug, getting dirt on his cooking apron and his shirt. “Let me just clean up right quick, and I’ll be ready for dinner. Thank you so much.” As Evelyn headed to the bathroom to wash her hands and face, George and Haley took their seats and Alex set the stir fry out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the sauce that Alex made: https://www.tasteslovely.com/best-stir-fry-sauce/


	8. Elliott

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Elliott would like to hire someone to fetch Sea Cucumber. You will be paid for your time.”

Elliott sat on the beach in a fold-out lawn chair, low to the ground, enjoying some coffee and watching the sunrise by the fire. It was still a little chilly from the night before, so he was fully dressed, and covered with a thick throw blanket.

Willy wouldn’t be out until the afternoon, and it was rare for the farmer to collect shells on the beach anymore, so Elliott was glad he’d placed the ad for the sea cucumber.

Kent made his way down the beach, fishing pole and cooler in hand. Elliott turned around, hearing footsteps, and waved.

“Good morning!” Kent called. 

“Good morning!” Elliott replied. “This sunrise has been resplendent.”

“It has! Makes me wish I had a camera. But a fishing pole and some time are an okay substitute.”

“True. What’s on your agenda today?” Elliott asked.

“Grabbin’ a sea cucumber for you, hopefully.” Kent put some bait on his hook. He walked down to the beach. Elliott took his coffee, his blanket, and his chair and followed Kent.

“Oh, you’re hanging out?” Kent casted out.

“I may as well.” Elliott set the chair down. “Actually, before I sit, may I get you a coffee or a tea?”

“Coffee, please. Black.”

“Yes, sir! I’ll be right back.” Elliott took his coffee cup inside for a warm-up too. He smiled to himself. This would be perfect. It would take Kent a while to pull up a sea cucumber. He filled a travel mug for Elliott, and added both coffee and cream to his own cup.

As soon as Elliott handed Kent his travel mug, the questions started. “Kent, have you always lived in Pelican Town?”

“No, sir.” Kent casted out into the sea. “Grew up in Zuzu City.”

“What brought you here?” Elliott leaned back in his chair and got comfortable, wrapping the blanket around himself.

“Family.” Kent reeled in a dinky sardine and put it in the cooler next to him. He casted again. “Jodi and I had kind of a whirlwind romance. We married young. Sam was born six months later. So I left my job at the record store, got a much better paying job as a garbage man, and did that for a while. Saved up a down payment to buy the house and moved.” Kent casted out into the ocean again, then took a sip of his coffee. “Right about then, the war started, so I signed up for the army.”

Elliott gasped. He couldn’t help himself.

“It’s not what you think!” Kent laughed. “I signed up early and was promised a logistics job, driving a truck. I got a commercial license driving garbage trucks, and they needed people with commercial licenses. For a while, it was great. I’d drive around the region, delivering everything from wood to food to tanks--wait!” Kent braced himself and struggled against the fishing line. After a couple minutes of reeling and pulling, Kent saw it. It was a giant tilapia!

“Well done!” Elliott admired the fish as Kent dropped it into the cooler.

“Thank you! Anyway, I got deployed. My first deployment was to the Fern Islands, helping to build an army base. I made a ton of money, Jodi seemed to be doing okay with Sam, I genuinely enjoyed the work...so when it was time to re-enlist, that’s what I did.” 

“That does sound like the most sound choice, given past experience.” Elliott took another drink of his coffee.

“Exactly. So I returned home, drove the truck and did supply runs between bases for a while, and then got deployed again. This time I was sent to the Gotoro Empire. I thought I’d just be driving again, so Jodi was more worried than I was. Turns out she had every right to be worried, the army threw me on the front lines because they were runnin’ out of guys.”

“Oh, Yoba!”

“I had a gun, a flak jacket, and skills I hadn’t used since basic. So I was out there fighting for my life, and seven months later, Vincent was born. He was a happy little surprise. Jodi didn’t even know she was expecting until she was about six months along. All I could do was stay alive and send paychecks.” Kent took a sip of his coffee. “Good coffee.”

“Thanks.”

“I’d rather not go into much of what happened during that second deployment, I hope you’ll understand.”

“Of course.”

“It would actually be cheaper for us to move to Grampleton, but we’re living hand to mouth right now. We can't save up for a move.” Kent pulled up another sardine for the cooler. “Until my pension and my disability come through, we’re broke. Sam’s paying the bills.”

“Wow. I didn’t realize things were that dire!”

“Yep. They are. I do a lot of fishing and odd jobs, and Jodi does a lot of gardening and canning, so at least we have food. I’m trying my best to get that pension and disability, and figure out something I can do for work here. Can’t commute, we had to sell the car a long time ago. Has to be something that I can bring a service dog to…”

“You’re getting a service dog?”

“I’ve applied. There’s red tape and a waiting list, of course, because these things are never easy. But the goal is for me to have a service dog to let me know whether I really need to worry about what’s happening. The dog would also keep me on a schedule, with walks and everything, and to direct my attention back to them when I start to panic. Sounds like a good idea.”

“It definitely does!” Elliott gave a wistful smile. “There’s nothing quite like the love between a man and a dog. It is...so pure. I’ve been thinking of getting a salty sea dog of my very own, one who loves to run into the sea to fetch driftwood and curl up at my feet by the fire…” Elliott glanced up to Kent, to see if he was listening.

He wasn’t.

“Come on, you son of a--” Kent was fighting hard with whatever was at the end of his line. He stepped back, tugging on the fishing pole and swearing. He reeled in more line. 

“Amazing!” Elliott leaned forward in his chair. He moved Kent’s travel mug out of the way.

“I didn’t hook you to lose you!” Kent took another step back and yanked the line out of the water, revealing a huge, wriggling purple sea cucumber.

Elliott let out a nervous laugh. “Oh, Yoba!”

“I hope Super Cucumber is okay.” Kent held out the giant sea creature, still wriggling.

“Yes, it is! Now I just need to figure out what to do with the thing.”

“What?” Kent put a hand on his hip. “I thought you needed a sea cucumber.”

“I requested it, yes…” Elliott tried to grab the thing as daintily as he could. “...and said I’d pay for a fisher’s time. That’s what I really wanted.”

“Man, you don’t have to do that!” Kent softened his voice. “Just come to the saloon, I’m always willing to talk. And I can always stop by and say hi when I’m doing some ocean fishing.”

Elliott blushed with embarrassment. “That...does sound rather pathetic now that I think about it. My desire for solitude in my writing endeavors is often at odds with my need for human companionship. Thank you for stopping by and fishing…”

“No problem! I need to get out of the house and talk to people more often, too.”

Elliott gave Kent a wad of bills. “Here you go, for your time.”

“Thank you. I’d love to turn this down, but you know how broke we are.” He pocketed the money. 

“So, what do you think I should do with this Super Cucumber?”

“They’re great protein. I mix them up with scallops and fish and greens in a seafood stew.” Kent smiled.

“Well, would you like to do that with this one?” Elliott asked.

“Yeah, I’ll bring you a serving tomorrow morning.”


	9. Emily

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Need Dandelion for a calzone I'm making. Could someone bring me one? --Emily"

“Why, though? That doesn’t sound very appetizing.” Demetrius handed Emily three dandelions.

“Oh, you brought extra! Thanks!” Emily grabbed the dandelions. “Everybirdy deserves a treat sometimes.”

“Everybirdy?”

Emily’s parrot friend climbed down from her shoulder to her hand and bit a leaf off of a dandelion. They grabbed the leaf with one foot and munched happily.

“Yep! This calzone’s for the birds!” Emily set the dandelions in a colander in the sink. “It’ll have a whole grain vegan crust, and it will be filled with maple syrup, millet, dandelion root, and dandelion seeds. I’ll hang half of it up outside so the little wild birds can have it, and give half to my friend.”

Demetrius turned to the parrot. He spoke in a high-pitched voice and reached a hand out. “Well, you certainly are a lucky bird! Be glad you have such a nice human--”

The parrot screamed and struck out, grabbing Demetrius’s finger and twisting.

“OW! YOBA!”

The parrot whipped their head around, crunching down on Emily’s arm. 

“Hey!” Emily stepped back and brought her hand to face level. She spoke sternly. “Listen, friend. We do NOT bite our houseguests.”

“Yeah! You listen to your human!” Demetrius held his injured pointer finger tightly in his other hand.

Emily turned to Demetrius and spoke in the same stern manner. “Listen, other friend. We do NOT put our hands near parrots unless we know them very well. Now, is your hand okay?”

“He tore me up pretty badly.” Demetrius showed Emily his finger. It was bleeding, with a puncture wound near the knuckle and a small flap of skin torn loose.

“Yeah, that’s bad.” Emily moved the colander to the counter. “Rinse that off, I’ll wrap it with a pressure dressing, and then you’ll go to the clinic and get stitches.” She turned on the water.

“Alright. Is your arm okay?” Demetrius rinsed his hands. Blood ran into the sink.

“Oh, yeah. It’s fine. My friend just wanted to protect me from you. Parrots bite their flockmates to get them out of the area when there’s a threat.” Emily reached in a cabinet and grabbed gauze and vet wrap.

“I didn’t mean to be a threat…”

“Parrots have a different perspective and way of thinking than us. What would you do if a giant tried to steal your food?” Emily turned off the water and handed Demetrius a wad of paper towels. 

“Um...run?”

“Well, think of parrots as highly evolved dinosaurs with pure hubris running through their veins. If they don’t like what you’re doing, they’ll bite you. That’s why I have all these first aid supplies. I’ve gotten quite a few bites since I rescued my friend. Haley’s gotten bit pretty bad, Maru’s gotten bit, Gus nearly got a new ear piercing...parrots are wild animals.”

“At the risk of sounding rude, why don’t you put that one back in the wild then?”

“I wish I could.” Emily shook her head. “The best place for a parrot is in the wild. But my friend here can’t fly, I’ve taken them to the vet and gotten the wing repaired as well as possible...and it’s just not good enough to support flight. So, the second-best place for a parrot is in a loving and interesting home with lots of good food and affection and patience and time out of the cage.”

“Huh. Okay.”

Emily wrapped gauze around Demetrius’s finger, then quickly put the pressure wrap over it. “Now, let’s go to the clinic.” She took a couple steps back, moved the parrot from her shoulder to her hand, grabbed another dandelion leaf, and walked into the bedroom.

“Here you go, friend,” she said, putting the parrot on their perch. She held out a dandelion leaf, which they gladly took. “Next time someone makes you mad, just scream at them, okay?”

Emily walked Demetrius to the clinic. 

“Hey Dad, what happened?” Maru grabbed a clipboard. “Is it an emergency?”

Emily answered. “My friend bit him. Right hand pointer finger, partial avulsion. He brought over some dandelions for a calzone, friend got a leaf, Demetrius reached a hand out, and my friend tore his finger up.” She sighed. “I’ll be paying for this.”

“Really? Thanks!” Demetrius smiled for the first time since the bite.

“Part of keeping a wild animal is doing damage control.” Emily sighed. 

“I appreciate it. I fully expected to pay for this, since it was my mistake.”

Emily reached in the pocket of her dress and pulled out a handful of bills. “Well, now you know.”

Maru took her dad back to the procedure room, where Dr. Harvey stitched him up.

Back at the desk, Maru called Emily over to settle the bill.

“Thanks, Emily. Before you go, I just have to ask. Why would you put dandelions in a calzone?”

Emily laughed. “It’s not that weird! I’m making it for the birds, half in the feeder and half for my friend. Vegan whole grain crust, filled with maple syrup, millet, and dandelion root.”

Now it was Maru’s turn to laugh. “The birds eat better than I do!”

“I could give you some of the calzone if you want. I’ve taste tested the recipe, it’s not bad at all!”

Maru cringed. “Um...no...thank you. I’ll just put a little more time into cooking for myself.”

“Your loss!”


	10. George

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I will pay three times the market value for a Frozen Tear. Please deliver directly into my hand! --George”

“Oooh, that could pay for a new lipstick!” Abigail headed back inside and grabbed the Frozen Tear from her dresser drawer. She had been meaning to give it to Sebastian, but this would give her an excuse to go back in the mines.

Frozen Tear in hand, she walked over to the Mullners’ house. 

“Took you long enough!” George took the Frozen Tear directly from Abigail’s hand. “Oh, I like the color of this one, it’ll be perfect.”

“Perfect for what?” Abigail asked.

He rolled toward the living room, past the TV, and parked himself at the desk. “Get in here!”

Abigail shrugged and followed.

“I’m making a brooch. You even know what that is? Kinda like a lapel pin. Girls your age don’t wear ‘em anymore.”

“I bet Penny would wear one.” Abigail chuckled. “She’s kind of old fashioned like that. She’s not even a hipster, she’s just, like...23 going on 50.”

“I know. She’s a nice girl.” George said. “Anyway, I’m going to try to make a brooch for Evelyn. She deserves something pretty.”

“How are you gonna do it?”

George pushed a chair back from the desk. “Stop hovering over me and I’ll show ya!”

Abigail sat down. “Cool, thanks!”

George grunted. He dug around in his desk drawer and pulled out a large washer, a hammer, a pair of tweezers, a toothpick, and a fancy silver button that had fallen off of one of Evelyn’s coats but she couldn’t bear to part with. He also pulled out a tube of super strong glue.

“Abigail, go in the restroom and get the hand towel and my glasses case, please.”

“Sure!” Abigail hopped up and grabbed his things.

As soon as she handed George the hand towel, he grabbed the Frozen Tear and wrapped it up.

“What are you--”

George slammed the Frozen Tear with the hammer, over and over. Eventually, it flattened out.

“Wait--”

“Well, you don’t expect me to hang that whole big thing off a lady’s sweater, do ya?”

Abigail laughed. “Good point.”

“I know it’s a good point, that’s why I made it! Now look at this.” George opened the hand towel. There were a few big chunks of Frozen Tear, about the size of a fingernail. Most of the chunks were smaller, the size of pepper flakes or seed beads. There was also an iridescent blue dust left behind, which George gently shook out of the towel into a pile on the desk.. He quickly sorted the chunks of Frozen Tear by size and shape; big thick chunks, small thick chunks, and flat flakes.

“Nice!”

George put on his glasses. “Betcha didn’t know I wore readers, huh? I should wear glasses for distance, too, but most the time, I just don’t care.”

Abigail nodded.

“Now, I’m gonna put the button over the top of the washer first. That’ll plug the hole so it doesn’t look like we’re using a piece of old plumbing hardware to make this thing.” He put a ring of glue around the inside of the washer and set the button on top.

“Wow, that is really cool, I can see why Granny saved it!” Abigail admired the ornate designs on the button.

“Don’t get too close, you’ll get glue in your hair.”

Abigail leaned back. George spread glue over the rest of the washer with the toothpick, being careful to keep it off of the button. He grabbed the tweezers and started setting the seed bead sized chunks on the washer.

“Wow…”

“What? You didn’t think I could grab those with the tweezers? I’ll have you know, my lower body is shot, but my fingers are as spry as they’ve ever been!”

“No, I wouldn’t have thought to put those on one by one. I would have picked them all up and sprinkled them.”

“Fast work is sloppy work! That’s what the Craft Lady on TV always says.” George carefully placed another piece of Frozen Tear.

“Wait, you watch the Craft Lady?”

“What of it? It’s my favorite program!”

“It is kind of a cool show.” Abigail grabbed the bow in her hair and gave it a little shake. “I was home sick one day in high school and watched her show. She showed us how to make hair bows. I’ve had this for, like, four years now!”

“Yep. She makes good quality stuff and teaches us how to do it, too.” George picked up one big chunk of Frozen Tear and put it right above the button.

“Is this the first thing you’ve made from her show?”

“Nope!” For the first time since Abigail showed up, George smiled. “I make a lot of her jewelry stuff. I made a necklace of hers as part of a contest, and won these supplies!” He opened the drawer and showed Abigail a little box of pliers, wire cutters, and beading wire. “Showed my name on the TV and everything!”

“Nice!” Abigail gave him a thumbs up. “Have you ever thought about selling jewelry?”

George picked up a flake and set it between some tiny chunks. “Yeah, for like two seconds. But can you imagine how much of a pain in the ass that would be? Gotta find a place to sell, set prices, convince people to buy, pay taxes, keep up a product line even when I don’t wanna...ugh.”

“Dude--”

“Hey!” George’s head snapped up. “You will call me Mr. Mullner, George, or sir!”

“Sorry, Mr. Mullner.” Abigail cringed. “What I meant to say was, I bet my dad would sell them in his store.”

“I might talk to him about it. I wouldn’t mind the extra money, but I don’t want the extra work.” He placed a few more flakes.

The flakes filled in the spaces between the small chunks and the one big accent chunk, but there were still small silver areas between some of the chunks of Frozen Tear. The whole thing was starting to look much more done.

“Would you like me to ask him?” Abigail asked.

“Nah. I’ll do it myself. I can bring in a few items to show him that I’m not making breakable crap here.” He wiped the pile of Frozen Tear dust off the desk with one hand, into his other hand which was waiting just under the desk. He sprinkled the powder all over the brooch, concentrating on the silver areas.

“Oh, nice! I was wondering what you were going to do with that dust.”

He gently shook the brooch. Most of the dust adhered to the brooch, minus the stuff that had landed on the Frozen Tear chunks and the silver button. By the time George was done, the entire washer was covered, either with the button, or with chunks and dust of the Frozen Tear. The biggest chunk stood out as a highlight, right above the button.

“Now all I gotta do is put a pin on the back of this thing, but that’ll have to wait until the glue dries.” He set the brooch inside the desk and scooted back.

“That was so cool! Thanks for letting me watch.” Abigail stood.

“No problem. Here’s what I owe you.” George reached in his pocket and pulled out 225G for Abigail.

“Thanks! I hope to see your stuff in the store soon.”

“Yeah, well, we’ll see if I can be bothered. I just like to watch the Craft Lady and make her more interesting projects.”


	11. Abigail

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Bored...could somebody bring me Daffodil? --Abigail”

Jas felt so grown up as she jotted a note down in her very own journal, staying at the bulletin board and glancing up a few times to make sure she spelled “Daffodil” right. Her first stop on the way to the forest was Vincent’s house.

“Wanna help me look for flowers?” Jas asked. “Aunt Marnie asked me to get some dandelions for the goats, and Miss Abigail wants a daffodil. She said so on the bulletin board!”

“Wow, I thought that was only for grown ups!”

“I’m not sure, actually. But I’ll bring her one. Maybe she’ll give me money! And then we can get candy at Pierre’s!”

“Oh yeah! I hope so! I don’t have any money. I asked Mommy for some and she said no. And then I asked Sam for some and he also said no because he spent all his money on pizza for him and the farmer.” Vincent sighed.

“Do you think he has a crush on the farmer?” Jas asked.

“Eww!” Vincent made a face. “Gross! Crushes are gross! They’d probably kiss each other!”

Jas cackled. She didn’t tease Vincent often, but she knew how to push his buttons.

After asking Jodi for permission, Jas and Vincent headed into the forest. They had no trouble at all finding dandelions, but couldn’t find a daffodil. They asked the traveling cart lady if she had any daffodils that she could just give them. She said no, but she let them pet the pig, so they left happy.

From there, they headed south around the lake. Again, they found dandelions, and a wild horseradish that they left alone, but no daffodils. 

“Jas, are you getting hot? I am.” Vincent whined.

“Me too.”

“I wish I had my swimsuit.”

“I bet we could put our feet in the lake!” Jas said.

“Oh yeah!” Vincent took off his shoes and ran barefoot to the shore. He sat down on the rocky ground and dangled his feet in.

Jas was close behind him. “Is it cold?”

Vincent laughed. “It’s super cold!”

Jas sat down by Vincent and stuck her feet in the water. She let out a shocked laugh. “It is cold!”

“Told ya!”

“I wish we could find a daffodil soon.” Jas picked up a small rock and tossed it in the lake.

Vincent laughed. “That was cool! It made little ripples!” He grabbed a bigger rock and tossed it in, giggling at the splash it made.

“Do you know how to skip rocks?” Jas picked up a flat rock about the size of her hand.

“No, but Sam does.” Vincent took the rock from Jas and mimicked throwing it like a frisbee. “It’s kinda like that. Like, you don’t just throw it, you have to toss it so it’s flat and it’s spinning.”

Jas gave it her best shot. The rock flew out above the water in a shallow arc and splashed in without skipping. “Darn.”

“It’s okay. It’s really hard and I can’t do it--HEY!!” Vincent pulled one foot out of the water. He struggled to pull his other foot out. 

“Are you okay?” Jas jumped to her feet.

“Something is biting me!” He pulled his leg up again, just enough to reveal a smallmouth bass clamped down on his big toe. “It’s strong!”

Jas picked up another rock, this one the size of her head, and dropped it right next to Vincent’s leg. She got down on all fours and screamed into the water. “Leave my friend alone!”

There was a barely imperceptible splash as the fish swam off. 

Vincent and Jas just stared at each other, both wet from the giant splash and in awe of what had just happened.

Jas was the first to break the silence. “That was a big fish.”

Vincent nodded. “I’m gonna buy you candy for saving me.”

The kids put their socks and shoes on their wet feet and continued south, hunting for daffodils that just weren’t showing up. Before long, they found themselves at the cliff where the bridge for the Flower Dance was installed on the day of the dance.

Vincent looked out toward the sea. “Do you know where we are?”

“Um...kind of? It looks like over there, there’s the place where we do the Flower Dance. But there’s usually a bridge. So maybe it’s not the same place.”

“Which way did we come from?”

Jas pointed to the east. “That way, I think. The trees look familiar.”

So they walked. The sun was beating down. They kept walking. Jas felt a little pinch in her shoe, the start of a blister. Both kids were starting to feel how long it had been since breakfast.

A small house peeked over the tops of the trees.

“Oh no!” Vincent buried his head in his hands. “We’re lost! We haven’t seen that house before!”

“Maybe there’s someone in the house who can tell us how to get out.” Jas picked up the pace.

“But what if it’s a monster? Or a bad guy!” Vincent tugged on the back of his friend’s dress. 

Jas turned back. “What if it’s a good witch? Or a good fairy?”

“I don’t want you to get hurt!”

“I don’t want both of us to stay lost forever!” Jas yanked her dress out of Vincent’s hand and stormed off toward the house. Vincent chased her.

“Hats?” Jas stopped short. “Maybe it used to be a store.”

“Me sell hats!” A small, squeaky voice came from the window.

“That doesn’t sound...human.” Vincent hid behind Jas. 

“Am mouse!”

“Are you a good mouse?” Vincent called out from behind Jas’s back.

“Me sell hats, poke!”

Jas walked confidently up to the window. “Excuse me, we don’t need hats, but we’re lost.”

“You lost?” The mouse turned their back. “You lost! Two kids lost!”

“Can you help us, please?”

The mouse hopped down from the window. Inside, the kids heard a cacophony of squeaks.

A couple minutes later, the door creaked open. A small mouse, carrying a sign with an arrow on it, walked out. Behind that mouse, a mouse with a bow on her head cleared her throat.

She spoke slowly and loudly. Her words sounded rehearsed. “Please take one of my sons along. He’s a strong boy. You can treat him like one of your items.”

“What?” Jas knelt down. “Can you get us out of the forest?”

The smaller mouse nodded.

The hat seller piped up. “Exit mouse!”

“Are you gonna lead us into a trap?” Vincent narrowed his eyes.

The mouse with the bow scurried inside. She dragged out a pair of shears.

“Don’t cut us!” Vincent jumped back.

“No, Vincent!” Jas pointed down at the shears. “Those are the kind that Aunt Marnie sells! She got them from Aunt Marnie’s! So they know the way.”

The mouse with the sign nodded.

“Please take one of my sons along. He’s exit mouse.” The mouse with the bow nodded sternly.

“Yes, ma’am.” Jas held out a hand to the small mouse with the sign. “Please help us.”

The mouse hopped up in Jas’s hand. He pointed with his sign around the back of the house, across a bridge to the other side of the river.

“But this isn’t how we came,” Jas said.

In the tiniest of squeaks, the small mouse spoke. “You go Aunt Marnie, poke!”

It took much less time for the kids to get back to the ranch than it did for them to get lost. On a small island in the river, Jas finally found a daffodil. Still, by the time they made it home, Jas was walking with a limp.

“Where the heck have you been?” Marnie waved Jas and Vincent inside. “You two look terrible!”

Their faces were smeared with dirt. Their clothes were filthy. Both kids had sunburns. And in the pocket of Jas’s dress, a tiny mouse peeked out.

“We were looking for a daffodil for Miss Abigail.” Jas shifted her weight uncomfortably.

“And we went to the lake and put our feet in! But then a fish bit me and Jas scared it off.”

“And then we got lost in the forest and we found an old abandoned house, and there were mice in it, and one of the mice told us how to get home.”

“It’s not still with you, is it?” Marnie put her hands on her hips. “I will not have a mouse in my house!”

The exit mouse grabbed his sign, crawled out of Jas’s pocket, and hopped down to the ground. He ran up to Marnie. 

“No!” Marnie jumped back.

The mouse swatted the very edge of her booted foot with his arrow sign. “Rude!” With that, he ran off through the open front door.

“Thank you, exit mouse!” Jas called. She back turned to Marnie with a glare. “He was the one who helped us get home.”

“I know, honey, but I run a ranch. I have grain and hay everywhere. Mice would wipe that all out. Now, are you and Vincent alright? It’s almost dinnertime.”

“I’m hungry,” Vincent said.

Jas’s lower lip started to tremble. 

“What’s the matter, honey?” Marnie knelt down.

It was like opening the floodgates. “I’m hungry and we didn’t have lunch and I have a sunburn and my foot hurts! And you were rude to my mousey and we still have to find Miss Abigail…” She sobbed.

“Alright, you two.” Marnie wrapped Jas up in a hug. “I will make grilled cheese and steamed veggies for dinner, which shouldn’t take long. I’ll put each of you in a bath, where I’ll look at your little feet to make sure you’re alright. I’ll put aloe on your sunburns. And while you’re eating, I’ll call Miss Abigail and tell her to come here for her daffodil.”

Jas sniffled against Marnie’s shoulder.

Vincent took a nervous step back. “Are you gonna call my mom?”

“Yes I am. She’ll be glad to know you’re staying for dinner and coming home all cleaned up.”

“Okay. Tell her don’t be mad.”

Jas was the first in the bath. Marnie wrapped her blister, gave her a clean outfit, and put aloe on her sunburn. Next was Vincent. Marnie checked his feet before he got in, gave him a t-shirt and sweatpants from Jas’s dresser, and slathered him with aloe. Jas was a little burned; Vincent’s skin was a bright and angry red.

She whipped up a quick dinner, and while the kids waited, she made sure they drank plenty of water. They were too tired to talk.

After they ate, Marnie called Abigail to the ranch. 

Jas proudly presented the daffodil. “Miss Abigail, I saw your notice on the bulletin board, and wrote it down in my very own journal, and then Vincent and I found a daffodil for you.”

“This isn’t as interesting as I thought it would be…”

Jas gasped. Her lip started to tremble again.

“...But it’s not your fault! Really!” 

“Hey!” Vincent yelled. “We walked all day, from the morning until dinnertime, to find that! Jas got an owie! And we put our feet in the lake but a fish bit me and then Jas scared it off! She threw a big rock in the water and yelled at the fish and it let go. And then we got lost!”

“Oh no!” Abigail cringed. “You two worked hard for this. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said it wasn’t interesting.”

“Wanna know how we got home?” Jas asked.

“Yeah, I’m curious. This is turning into a really interesting daffodil!”

“We found an old, old house in the woods, with mice living inside. And they can talk! And one of them had a sign with an arrow and it told us how to get back to Aunt Marnie’s house.”

“Really?”

“Yeah! Ask Aunt Marnie! She saw!”

Abigail turned to Marnie.

Marnie sighed. “That little jerk hit me with his sign and told me I was rude because I don’t allow mice in my house.”

Abigail laughed. She couldn’t help it. “Well, Jas and Vincent, thank you very much for telling me about this daffodil. Because you went through so much, I’m going to give you each 90G.”

“Wow!” Vincent rubbed his hands together.

Jas yawned. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean I’m bored, I just mean thank you and I’m tired.”

“It’s okay. You had a long day!” Abigail gave each kid a stack of change, then headed for the door. “Thanks again.”

“Thank you, Miss Abigail.” Jas put her coins in her pocket.

“Yeah, thanks!” Vincent spun one of his coins on the table.

As soon as Abigail left, Vincent turned to Jas. “I can buy you a bunch of candy with this! Maybe we could go to Pierre’s tomorrow if your foot feels better.”

“Oh yeah! I forgot about the candy!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Exit Mouse is an item in the SNES game Earthbound. It leads characters out of mazes and dungeons. So I figured, why not have Hat Mouse have a few Exit Mouse friends?


	12. Demetrius

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Looking to dissect a Seaweed. Please deliver to Demetrius at 24 Mountain Road.”

Leah held out the cloth bag. “Here’s that Seaweed you asked for, Mr. Demetrius.”

Demetrius took the bag and pulled out the seaweed. It was still damp.

“Perfect, this looks like exactly what I need.” He held the strands of seaweed at eye level. They nearly touched the floor.

“Why would you need to dissect seaweed, anyway?” Leah asked.

His face lit up. “I want to see how the holdfasts of macroalgae like seaweed, which are plants, compare to the holdfasts of animals like sea sponges and cnidarians.”

“Wait, sea sponges are animals?”

“Barely.” Demetrius laughed. “Like all other animals, sponges are multicellular, heterotrophic, and produce ova and spermatozoa. But unlike a coral or a jelly, they lack a nervous system.”

Leah cringed. “Crap. I use sea sponges in my art, but I don’t want to create demand for the killing of an animal.” A different cringe spread across her face. “But I don’t want to create the demand for synthetic sponges, either...”

“I bet Robin could recommend some good shop towels.”

“I actually need something with the texture of a sponge, though, to apply paint. Maybe I could cover one in silicone and use that…”

“Oh! Create a mold of it?” Demetrius asked.

“Exactly. Silicone won’t absorb paint like a sponge, so I’ll have to vary my technique, but I’ll still have that texture I need. And it’ll be more permanent than a sponge.”

Just then, Maru’s voice called out. “Hey! You want some coffee?”

“Yes please!” Demetrius and Leah called out in unison.

“Wait, who else is here?” Maru peeked her head inside the lab. She was still in pajamas, with a bandana covering her frizzy curls.

“It’s just me.” Leah waved.

“What are you doing here? Sorry I’m in my pajamas!”

Leah shook her head. “No problem! I have pajama days too.”

“I actually just woke up,” Maru said, rubbing her eye. “There was a comet close enough to the planet to be seen through a telescope, so of course I had to see it and take pictures.”

“Wait. Pictures?” Demetrius folded his arms. “Did you borrow my astrophotography camera?”

“Yes, I did.” Maru glanced down at her father’s shoes. “I used my own SD card, took the battery out when I was done, put it on the charger, and the camera is back in its case.”

“Okay…”

“I had to, Dad, it was a comet!” Maru scurried over to the computer in the lab and used it to access the house’s network. “You know those things don’t sit still!” 

Demetrius laughed. “Okay, yeah...I’ll give you that.”

Maru showed the screen to Demetrius and Leah. “It took forever! But I finally got a couple good shots, once I got the telescope and the camera to agree that they were actually tracking the comet, and not the stars.”

“Oh, Yoba!” Demetrius gasped. “That’s amazing!”

“And inspiring!” Leah stepped closer to the computer.

“Well, we’re about to go small scale today,” Demetrius said to Maru. “Leah came through with some seaweed, so I’m going to dissect it and examine the holdfasts, and take pictures of the seaweed’s cells under the microscope.”

“Oh, that sounds so cool!” Leah piped up. “Mr. Demetrius, instead of paying me, will you please send me the digital images of the cells? If they’re the ones I’m thinking of, the rectangular cells that look like bricks, they’d be perfect for my next art project!”

“Yes, those are the ones!” Demetrius beamed. “I should have those images to you by tomorrow.”

“Perfect, thank you.”

As Demetrius rummaged around for a container for the seaweed, and Maru wandered off to the kitchen to start the coffee, Leah did a silent happy dance.  


“So, Leah, what would you use the photos for? Aren’t you mostly a sculptor?”

“Yeah. I’d use them as a reference. Here, just a second.” Leah sat down on a stool, pulled out a little notebook, and started sketching. “I have some thin, weird pieces of scrap wood, and you and Maru just gave me an idea for what to do with it.” 

“Oh really!” Demetrius peeked over her shoulder.

“Yeah.” She showed him the picture. “I’d like to use your microscope photos as references to build some plant cells with my scrap wood. I’ll keep the focus on one cell, like this.” She pointed to her notebook. “I’ll use the smaller pieces of wood to build the insides of the cell, and fix them in place…” She stopped to think.

“How will you do that?”

“That’s what I’m trying to figure out.” She giggled. “Resin, maybe? Or clear acrylic supports? Anyway, I’ll build a cell. And in the nucleus, I’ll put a magnifying lens. Patrons can look in that lens and see a photo of the stars, to show how the large movements of the universe are connected to the microscopic world of every cell, and how they’re alike in their mind-boggling scale.”

Demetrius stepped back. It looked like he was looking out into deep space, with how wide his stare got. 

“Leah, your mind…” He shook his head, trying to rein in his thoughts. “It’s...wow. I would have never thought of that. I’m honestly a little jealous!”

Leah shrugged. “And I would never think to examine the holdfasts of a seaweed plant. You ask, why does this work? And that’s a question I never think to ask. I think, okay, seaweed sticks to rocks. That’s just how it is. You’re trying to tease out the mechanism, which is something I’d never think to do. It takes all kinds.”

“I guess you’re right,” he said, “but that creativity would be so fun to live with.”

“Thanks! It really is, but it’s not always great at paying the bills.”

“Oh, I hear you on that one!” Demetrius laughed. “I haven’t had a real project with grant money for months. I’m glad Robin’s financially successful, otherwise I’d have to get me a tent and set up camp next door to the wild man!”

“Right? At least as an artist I can take on projects that, while not super fulfilling, get me paid.”

“Like what?”

“Signs, mostly.” She shrugged. “I just finished up a big project for Grampleton Lumber, that’s why I have all that scrap wood laying around.”

“Robin bid on that project, too.”

A flash of recognition crossed Leah’s face. “OH! Okay, the owner said he’d taken another bid from Pelican Town. That makes sense! He wanted something really down home, artsy-craftsy looking, and the other bidder from here showed him some slick, professional work. I figured it was Clint, but I guess not.”

“Why would someone want work that looks less professional than Robin’s? I’d think a store owner would want to look well-established and successful.”

“Grampleton Lumber is trying to attract the DIY crowd.” Leah shrugged. “They wanted something that looked handmade. They want people to look at the signs, think that they could do something similar if they buy some good wood and a woodburning pen, and get inspired.” She sighed. “Believe me, I’d much rather be creating my own vision than using my monkey skills to translate someone else’s. But I live alone, and even though the house is paid for, I still need to eat and keep the lights on. And buy supplies for more projects, of course.”

“Leah, how do you take your coffee?” Maru interrupted.

“Black, please.”

“Awesome! Easy mode!” Maru scurried back to the kitchen.

“Is there really any way to freelance science?” Leah asked.

“Writing...which is too bad, because I hate doing it. But I have written a textbook about the Valley’s plant life, and I’ve written a how-to about using gibberellic acid in seed germination. It’s just such a slog!”

Maru came back with two cups of coffee, one black and one nearly white with cream. She set them both down on the table by the computer. “Be right back!”

“Thanks, honey!” Demetrius called.

A few moments later, she walked back in with her own coffee. It was in a comically large travel mug.

“Is that whole thing filled up?” Demetrius reached for the travel mug.

“Not for long!” Maru took a swig of the coffee.  


“You know that stuff can stunt your growth, right?”

“Dad. I’m twenty years old. These bones aren’t getting any taller.” Maru gestured up and down her body.

“Yeah, well, don’t drink too much.”

Maru, seemingly oblivious, took another big drink.

“So! Are you ready to get started on this seaweed?” Demetrius asked.

“Yeah!” Maru practically ran to the bench. “We’re dissecting it and examining the holdfasts, right?”

“Exactly! Leah, you’re welcome to stay if you’d like.”

“Sure!”

With that, the two scientists and the artist dived deep into the plant, spending hours taking apart air sacs and dissecting stems and examining holdfasts under the microscope.


End file.
